DAVAO CITY – There are two people President Duterte fears most : his daughters, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio and Veronica nicknamed “Kitty,” his child with long-time partner Honeylet Avanceña.

“In front of my daughters I am just a sergeant. They are the generals,” the commander-in-chief said of his daughters Sara and Kitty.

The President has always described Sara, who has been touted to possibly give the presidency a run in 2022, as fierce and determined.

Although the second child, she is considered the alpha of the family with his first wife, Elizabeth Zimmerman, Duterte said.

Duterte admitted it was his daughter Kitty who ordered him to go on a trip to Hong Kong over the weekend to spend the birthday of her mother there.

“It was my daughter who ordered me to go to Hong Kong with her and her mother. There was nothing I can do about it. Who am I not to follow my daughter?” Duterte said during the joint 25th anniversary of the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) and the 9th anniversary celebration of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) here the other night.

Duterte flew with Avanceña and Kitty to Hong Kong where they were spotted in Causeway Bay, a popular shopping district, Saturday evening.

Reports said Duterte was accompanied by a group of bodyguards and appeared at the World Trade Center in Causeway Bay. Then he boarded the bus and headed for Wan Chai.

Former presidential assistant and senatorial aspirant Christopher Go joined the President and his family in Hong Kong, which he described as a short “rest and recreation” trip.

The family was also spotted shopping at the Uniqlo store in Causeway Bay.

“It was actually Kitty who requested her father for the trip, as a gift. They always do this when Duterte was still the mayor of Davao City. The weekend getaway is for rest and recreation,” Go said.

While the President said he fears his daughters the most, it was different with his sons Paolo and Sebastian. He said he could simply tell them to shut up.

“The boys, well they can take a tongue-lashing or (I will) shout, ‘shut up.’ But the girls, if they begin to quarrel with you, you cannot just say, ‘shut up’ because the mayor (Sara) would also say, ‘Ah you also shut up’,” he said.

Duterte said he could not argue with Sara. It was his elder daughter who reportedly took care of and managed everything in the family when her mother and father separated.

Duterte also said he is not afraid of the mothers of his four children.

He professed his special love for his daughters. – With Christina Mendez

When US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited last week, he made assurances his country would come to the Philippines’ defense in the event of an armed attack on our vessels and aircraft in the South China Sea.

President Duterte and visiting Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad emphasized yesterday the importance of freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea in maintaining peace and progress in the region, which is grappling with territorial disputes as well as China’s muscle-flexing.